S. 3362 118th Congress Senate

DETERRENT Act

Official title: A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require additional information in disclosures of foreign gifts and contracts from foreign sources, restrict… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require additional information in disclosures of foreign gifts and contracts from foreign sources, restrict contracts with certain foreign entities and foreign countries of concern, require certain staff and faculty to report foreign gifts and contracts, and require disclosure of certain foreign investments within endowments.

Introduced: November 29, 2023 Introduced by: Thom Tillis Republican · North Carolina See on congress.gov

Education Civil actions and liabilityCongressional oversightContracts and agencyEducation programs funding

More subjectsShow fewer subjects

Financial services and investmentsGovernment information and archivesGovernment studies and investigationsHigher educationSubversive activitiesTeaching, teachers, curricula

Everywhere this bill has been 2 steps

Introduced

In committee

Reported out

Passed House

Passed Senate

To President

Became law

Nov 29, 2023

Introduced in Senate

Nov 29, 2023

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Ask about this bill AI · grounded in the bill text

Have a question about what this bill does? Ask in plain English; the answer is drawn from the bill's actual text and official record, and it'll tell you when something isn't in the text rather than guess.

AI answers can be imperfect; always confirm against the full bill text.

Latest action November 29, 2023

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions Act or the DETERRENT Act

This bill expands oversight and disclosure requirements related to foreign sources and institutions of higher education (IHEs).

Specifically, the bill requires an IHE to annually disclose to the Department of Education (ED) any year in which the IHE

receives a gift from a foreign country of concern (e.g., China or Russia) or foreign entity of concern of any dollar amount;
receives a gift or contract from a foreign source (other than a foreign country of concern or foreign entity of concern) that is valued at $50,000 or more, considered alone or in combination with all other gifts or contracts within a calendar year (current disclosure threshold is $250,000 or more), or which has an undetermined monetary value;
enters into a contract with a foreign country of concern or foreign entity of concern after receiving a waiver for such contract; or
is substantially controlled by a foreign source.

Additionally, the bill

prohibits IHEs from entering into contracts with a foreign country of concern or with a foreign entity of concern without obtaining a waiver,
requires certain IHEs to disclose gifts or contracts between covered individuals (e.g., researchers) and foreign sources, and
requires private IHEs with specified assets or investments to file annual investment disclosure reports.

The bill requires ED to investigate possible violations of this bill and outlines the various penalties for each violation.

Related & companion bills 2